Deaminates

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. To remove an amino group from a molecule, especially in biochemical processes where nitrogen-containing groups are detached from compounds; a chemical reaction significant in metabolism ; the enzymatic act of extracting amino groups from organic substances
2. The process by which an amino functional group is eliminated from a compound, usually involving enzymes and contributing to nitrogen metabolism; a reaction converting amines into other chemical forms ; the biochemical transformation involving the loss of amino groups from molecules in living organisms
3. A chemical reaction involving the removal of nitrogenous amino groups from molecules, often catalyzed by enzymes and important in cellular functions; the enzymatic stripping of amino groups from compounds; a metabolic step transforming amino acids or related substances by elimination of amino groups

Etymology: The prefix does most of the work here. "De-" comes from Latin "dē", meaning "down from" or "away from," and it reverses or removes whatever follows it. "Deaminate" is built by attaching it to "aminate," which in turn comes from "amine," a chemical term for compounds containing nitrogen joined to hydrogen and carbon. Its root, "amino," traces back through "ammonia" to "Ammon," the Greek name of the Egyptian god Amun, because ammonia was first obtained from salts produced near the god's sanctuary in Libya. So a deaminated molecule is simply one that has lost its amine (amino) group. The word is a modern scientific coinage, put together from older building blocks, and it describes a process that enzymes in living cells perform routinely, most notably when organisms break down proteins and dispose of excess nitrogen.

Synonyms: removes amine group, deaminize, denitrogenate, deaminate